Ghost of Chloe at the Myrtles Plantation

Possibly the most well known of the Myrtles' supposed ghosts, Chloe (or Cloe) was reportedly a slave owned by Clark and Sara Woodruff. According to one story, Clark Woodruff had pressured or forced Chloe into being his mistress. Other versions of the legend have Chloe listening in at keyholes to learn news of Clark Woodruff's business dealings or for other purposes. After being caught, either by Clark or Sara Woodruff, one of her ears was cut off, and she wore a green turban to hide it.

Chloe supposedly baked a cake for one of the two daughters containing extract of boiled and reduced oleander leaves, which are extremely poisonous. The reason she did what she did was to get work back inside the house. A maid who was getting the favor of the mistress was a suspect, with some saying she was getting revenge on the Woodruffs and some saying she was attempting to redeem her position by curing the family of the poisoning. According to the legends, her plan backfired. Only Sara and her two daughters ate the cake, and all died from the poison. Chloe was then supposedly hanged by the other slaves, and thrown into the Mississippi River, either as punishment or to escape punishment by Clark Woodruff for harboring her.

While the U.S. Federal Census confirms that the family owned 5 enslaved people in 1820 and 32 enslaved people in 1830, historical documentation does not support the legend as there are no known records of the Woodruffs owning a slave named Chloe or Cloe. The legends usually claim that Sara and her two daughters were poisoned, but Mary Octavia survived well into adulthood. Finally, Sara, James, and Cornelia Woodruff were not killed by poisoning, but instead succumbed to yellow fever. Regardless of the factual inaccuracy of the Chloe story, some believe a woman wearing a green turban haunts the plantation.